Roberto Martínez shows faith in Cristiano Ronaldo, as he includes him in Portugal’s Nations League squad.
Despite a disappointing European Championship, Cristiano Ronaldo has been given a chance to redeem himself as Portugal coach Roberto Martínez named him in the squad for the upcoming Nations League matches.
The 39-year-old legendary forward, who holds the record for most international goals with 130, will have the opportunity to bounce back from a goalless Euro 2024 campaign.
Ronaldo’s inclusion in the squad, announced on Friday, comes ahead of Portugal’s home games against Croatia on September 5 and Scotland on September 8.
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Portugal squad:
Goalkeepers: Diogo Costa (FC Porto), José Sá (Wolverhampton), Rui Silva (Real Betis).
Defenders: Rúben Dias (Manchester City), António Silva (Benfica), Renato Veiga (Chelsea), Gonçalo Inacio (Sporting), Tiago Santos (Lille), Diogo Dalot (Manchester United), Nuno Mendes (Paris Saint-Germain), Nélson Semedo (Wolves).
Midfielders: João Palhinha (Bayern Munich), João Neves (Paris Saint-Germain), Vitinha (Paris Saint-Germain), Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United), Bernardo Silva (Manchester City), Rúben Neves (Al-Hilal), João Félix (Chelsea), Francisco Trincão (Sporting), Pedro Gonçalves (Sporting).
Forwards: Rafael Leão (AC Milan), Geovany Quenda (Sporting), Pedro Neto (Chelsea), Cristiano Ronaldo (Al Nassr), Diogo Jota (Liverpool).
Martínez is seemingly willing to give Ronaldo another chance to prove himself, despite his scoreless run in all five of Portugal’s Euro 2024 games, which ended in a quarterfinal exit to France via a penalty shootout.
Martínez said after Euro 2024 that his team is starting “a new cycle” for the 2026 World Cup, which is being hosted in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Ronaldo will be 41 by the time that tournament in North America kicks off, and Martínez said after their exit from Euro 2024 that it was “too soon” to say whether Ronaldo had played his final game for his country.
